South Korean bishops to campaign against capital punishment

Over 60 people remain on death row, no executions have been carried out since 1997

November 25, 2016

The Catholic bishops' conference is renewing its opposition to the death penalty with an awareness-raising campaign utilizing media, education and cultural events.

The Subcommittee for the Abolition of Capital Punishment held its annual plenary and talked about how to further promote the church's stance on the death penalty to Korean society.

The subcommittee will campaign against capital punishment by publishing op-eds and articles by respected individuals from the church and other organizations including secular ones.

Along with this, they plan to produce education material targeting middle and high school students by the end of this year. They will also design a special performance on the occasion of the World Day Against the Death Penalty on Nov. 30.

The bishops' committee will aid the campaign by holding a discussion and concert on Dec. 18 in Chucheon, Gangwon province.

The Catholic Church in Korea has been long been trying to get capital punishment abolished even though the country has not carried out an execution since 1997.

According to the Cornell Law School "at least 61 people were believed to be on death row at the end of 2014 and we know of one new death sentence so far in 2015."